Article VI – Structure
Section 1 - Student Government Association Membership
- The Student Government Association shall consist of the SGA Officers and members of the Student Senate and the House of Representatives, all of whom must be duly elected in accordance with the procedures set forth in Article VII of this Constitution or assume office in accordance with the procedures set forth in Article VIII of this Constitution.
- Only members of SGA or their designated proxies shall have the right to vote at SGA general sessions.
- Each member of SGA must:
- Be in good academic and social standing with the College, defined as not being on academic or disciplinary probation or suspension;
- Abide by the procedures and attendance policy of SGA, as outlined by the Constitution and Bylaws.
- If a member of SGA does not meet the requirement set forth in Section 1C of Article VI, s/he may be removed from office through a procedure in accordance with Article VIII of this Constitution.
Section 2 - Student Government Association Officers
Officers of SGA include the President, the Speaker of the House, the President of the Senate, the Vice President of Programming, the Secretary of Finance, the Secretary of Administration, the Communications Director, the Chair of the Student Affairs Committee, the Chair of the Campus Improvements Committee, and the Chair of the Dining Services Committee, all of whom shall be elected to one-year terms and shall be eligible for reelection to a subsequent term or terms.
- All SGA Officers shall attend meetings of the Executive Committee and SGA general sessions with voting privileges, subject to Section 2C.5 of this Article VI.
- The President shall:
- Preside over the Student Government Association;
- Not be permanently off campus during the Fall or Spring Term while serving in office;
- Have served on SGA for at least two semesters prior to commencement of her/his term of office;
- Preside over meetings of the Executive Committee;
- Serve as an ex-officio member of all SGA committees;
- Have the authority to appoint ad-hoc committees of SGA with the affirmative majority vote of the Executive Committee officers present at a meeting at which a quorum of sixty percent of members are present;
- Serve as a voting member of the College Council Steering Committee;
- Represent SGA as a voting member at meetings of the College Council;
- Nominate students to serve on College Council committees
- Represent the student body at Board of Trustees meetings to which s/he is invited;
- Advise the College administration on the business and legislation of SGA.
- The Speaker of the House shall:
- Serve as Parliamentarian, advising SGA on rules and procedure;
- Not be permanently off campus during the Fall or Spring Term while serving in office;
- Have served on SGA for at least two semesters prior to commencement of her/his term of office;
- Preside over general sessions of SGA;
- Serve as a voting member in general sessions only in the event of a tie;
- Assume the duties of the President if the President is absent or unable to execute the duties outlined in the Constitution and Bylaws;
- Serve as a voting member of the College Council Steering Committee;
- Represent SGA as a voting member at meetings of the College Council.
- The President of the Senate shall:
- Preside over meetings of the Student Senate;
- Not be permanently off campus during the Fall or Spring Term while serving in office;
- Have served on SGA for at least two semesters prior to commencement of her/his term of office;
- Be a junior or senior based on her/his intended year of graduation;
- Maintain a minimum 3.0 GPA;
- Serve as a voting member of the Student Senate only in the event of a tie;
- Advise the Executive Committee and the House of Representatives on the business of the Student Senate;
- Assume the duties of the Speaker of the House if the Speaker of the House is absent or unable to execute the duties outlined in the Constitution and Bylaws.
- Represent SGA as a voting member at meetings of the College Council.
- The Vice President of Programming shall:
- Serve as the President of the Student Activities Council;
- Preside over meetings of the Programming Committee;
- Have served on SAC for at least two semesters prior to commencement of her/his term of office;
- Serve as a voting member of the Programming Committee;
- Advise the Executive Committee and SGA on the business of the Programming Committee and the Student Activities Council.
- The Secretary of Finance shall:
- Preside over meetings of the Finance Committee;
- Not be permanently off campus during the Fall or Spring Term while serving in office;
- Have served on SGA for at least two semesters prior to commencement of her/his term of office;
- Serve as a voting member of the Finance Committee only in the event of a tie;
- Advise the Executive Committee and SGA on the business of the Finance Committee;
- Keep records of all financial transactions of SGA;
- Disburse funds when authorized to do so by SGA or the Executive Committee;
- Report on the financial activities of SGA at each general session.
- The Secretary of Administration shall:
- Have served on SGA for at least one semester prior to commencement of her/his term of office;
- Facilitate the internal communication of SGA;
- Maintain the minutes, files, and attendance records of SGA;
- Ensure that the agendas and minutes of all general sessions, as well as copies of all proposed and enacted legislation, are made available to the entire campus community in a timely manner.
- The Communications Director shall:
- Preside over meetings of the Communications Committee;
- Not be permanently off campus during the Fall or Spring Term while serving in office;
- Have served on SGA for at least one semester prior to commencement of her/his term of office;
- Serve as a voting member of the Communications Committee;
- Advise the Executive Committee and SGA on the business of the Communications Committee.
- The Chair of the Student Affairs Committee shall:
- Preside over meetings of the Student Affairs Committee;
- Have served on SGA for at least one semester prior to commencement of her/his term of office;
- Serve as a voting member of the Student Affairs Committee;
- Advise the Executive Committee and SGA on the business of the Student Affairs Committee.
- The Chair of the Campus Improvements Committee shall:
- Preside over meetings of the Campus Improvements Committee;
- Have served on SGA for at least one semester prior to commencement of her/his term of office;
- Serve as a voting member of the Campus Improvements Committee;
- Advise the Executive Committee and SGA on the business of the Campus Improvements Committee.
- The Chair of the Dining Services Committee shall:
- Preside over meetings of the Dining Services Committee;
- Have served on SGA for at least one semester prior to commencement of her/his term in office;
- Serve as a voting member of the Dining Services Committee;
- Advise the Executive Committee and SGA on the business of the Dining Services Committee.
Section 3 - The Student Senate
The Student Senate shall be comprised of the President of the Senate and six student senators, including one junior and one senior from each of the three academic divisions, all of whom shall be elected to one-year terms, and maintain a minimum 3.0 GPA.
- All senators shall attend meetings of the Student Senate and general sessions of SGA with voting privileges.
- The Student Senate shall:
- Consider issues, institute projects, and initiate legislation pertaining to academics;
- Advise the College faculty and administration on academic issues;
- Collaborate with student representatives from academic departments to enhance students’ academic experiences;
- Fulfill other responsibilities outlined in the Bylaws or given to it by the Executive Committee.
Section 4 - The House of Representatives
The House of Representatives shall be comprised of five representatives from the senior class, five representatives from the junior class, eight representatives from the sophomore class, and eight representatives from the first-year class, and such number of correspondent representatives as are to be elected in accordance with Section 4C of Article III of this Constitution, all of whom shall be elected to on-year terms.
- Each representative shall serve on at least one standing committee.
- All representatives shall attend committee meetings and general sessions of SGA with voting privileges.
Section 5 - Student Government Association Committees
The Student Government Association shall maintain an Executive Committee and the following six standing committees: Finance Committee, Communications Committee, Programming Committee, Student Affairs Committee, Campus Improvements Committee, and Dining Services Committee.
- Membership for the six standing committees shall be determined through members’ self-nomination with final approval and appointment by the SGA President.
- The Executive Committee shall:
- Be comprised of the President, the Speaker of the House, the President of the Senate, the Secretary of Finance, the Secretary of Administration, the Communications Director, the Vice President of Programming, the Chair of the Student Affairs Committee, the Chair of the Campus Improvements Committee, and the Chair of the Dining Services Committee;
- Meet within one week before each general session to approve a final agenda.
- Coordinate projects and responsibilities between the six standing committees and the Student Senate;
- Serve as a forum for discussion on the internal and external matters of SGA;
- Appoint an ad hoc committee of SGA at three-year intervals to review whether having correspondent members from the student organizations then referred to in Section C of Article VII of the Constitution continues to reasonably accomplish the goal of attempting to achieve representation in SGA of the diverse interests and points of view of a significant proportion of students;
- Serve as an oversight committee for SGA with the power to enforce the policies outlined in the Constitution and Bylaws.
- The Finance Committee shall:
- Be comprised of an odd number of members, including the Secretary of Finance;
- Formulate and manage the SGA budget in accordance with the procedures outlined in the Bylaws;
- Advise SGA and student organizations on the funding guidelines outlined in the Bylaws;
- Meet when necessary to review funding requests and fiscal policy of SGA;
- With the approval of the Executive Committee, present all funding requests for approval at a general session of SGA;
- Allocate funds during the Spring Term for the upcoming academic year to recognized student organizations that request funding and meet the requirements outlined in the Bylaws;
- The final allocation must be approved by a majority vote of those SGA members present at a general session at which a quorum is present.
- Audit student organizations that receive funds by following procedures outlined in the Bylaws;
- Communicate financial decisions of SGA to officers of respective student organizations;
- Enforce financial decisions of SGA through procedures outlined in the Bylaws.
- The Communications Committee shall:
- Work to enhance communication between SGA and the student body;
- Inform the campus community of SGA legislation, actions, approvals, initiatives, and events;
- Fulfill other responsibilities outlined in the Bylaws or given to it by the Executive Committee.
- The Programming Committee shall:
- Plan and coordinate SGA events;
- Fulfill other responsibilities outlined in the Bylaws or given to it by the Executive Committee.
- The Student Affairs Committee shall:
- Work to enhance the social and extracurricular experiences of Centre College students;
- Consider issues, institute projects, and initiate legislation pertaining to all areas of student life;
- Fulfill other responsibilities outlined in the Bylaws or given to it by the Executive Committee.
- The Campus Improvements Committee shall:
- Monitor the services and facilities available to Centre College students and make relevant recommendations to the College administration on behalf of the student body;
- Consider issues, institute projects, and initiate legislation to improve the quality of campus services and facilities;
- Fulfill other responsibilities outlined in the Bylaws or given to it by the Executive Committee.
- The Dining Services Committee shall:
- Bring forth and consider issues relating to various dining services on campus;
- Serve as a liaison between the student body and the College’s dining service provider;
- Fulfill other responsibilities outlined in the Bylaws or given to it by the Executive Committee.